Texas man involved in Lincoln meth operation sentenced to prison

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) — A Texas man is going to prison for his role in a drug trafficking ring in Lincoln.

Jose Saul Delira, 49, was sentenced in federal court on Wednesday to 17 years in prison, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.

Between August 2020 and February 2021, Delira helped Lincoln residents get methamphetamine and other drugs from Mexico, Texas and Arizona to sell here.

He worked as a middleman, authorities said, introducing the local dealers to Mexican drug sources.

In November 2020, Delira was staying in Lincoln with one of the co-conspirators, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.

Law enforcement searched the home and found more than 1/3 pound of meth, about an ounce of cocaine, 4 pounds of marijuana, assorted pills, guns and drug packaging materials, authorities said.

All told, based on the charges Delira was convicted of, the group trafficked more than 500 grams of a meth mixture, more than 50 grams of pure meth and unspecified amounts of cocaine and marijuana.

Delira had a previous federal conviction for a meth distribution conspiracy.

In 2005, he was sentenced to a little more than 15½ years in prison.

After he is released, Delira will spend 10 years on supervised release.

His co-defendant, Richard Garza, will go on trial in August, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.